Yellow
by Colours of Imagination
Summary: Aziraphale and Crowley after the world didn't end. When an unexpected surprise turns up will it push them apart or bring them closer together? Ineffable dads...
1. Time Passes

Obviously nothing belongs to me… unless Adam decides it does… but I don't think I can do better puppy eyes than dog so I doubt he'll rearrange reality on that front.

It had been six months since the world didn't end. There was still no sign of it being likely to end and they had been left alone by both sides. Everything seemed rather… normal. Aziraphale had even convinced Crowley to try reading, although he wasn't entirely sure that was down to his attempts at temptation so much as boredom on the demon's part since he seemed to be doing a lot less evil these days.

"Hey, Angel?" Crowley called from the bookshelf where Aziraphale had put the books Adam had left in the shop, the only ones he'd been able to get Crowley to read so far, those and the Jeffrey Archer books, which he wasn't sure was actually a positive. Then again adventures of plucky young children causing mischief but generally in a cheerful and helpful manner, it could be worse. "Did you try sneaking some more books onto this shelf to get me to read them? You could have just asked, I mean I'd probably have said no, but you could have asked." Aziraphale frowned, looking at the book in his best friend's hand.

"I think perhaps we should telephone our dear friends Newton Pulsifer and Anathama Device, and see what is happening in Tadfield." It was a little concerning seeing new books show up, given everything else that had happened. Although if that was all that happened then they should probably count themselves very lucky indeed given the alternative they had managed to avoid.

It had been four years since the world didn't end. There was still no sign of it being likely to end and other than a brief message from their respective sides requesting that they please remain on Earth pending further information (Crowley's message being delivered in a less polite manner than that Aziraphale had received) they had been mostly left alone by both sides. Everything remained relatively normal aside from intermittent additions of books to the shelf. Crowley still refused to read any of the other books in the shop, but then he had only just started reading really and some of the more complex tomes did need you to understand various other references so Aziraphale was hopeful in a few decades he might be able to persuade him.

It seemed that the books tended to show up when Adam wanted to know more about something new he had learned about, often, but not always, at school. So Newton Pulsifer had become the school librarian, something which thankfully did not involve computers, and had begun ordering in some of the more acceptable of the books that showed up in Aziraphale's shop. Their best guess was that he wanted the books to exist, enough that they needed to manifest, but that his conscious mind was keeping him from forming them directly, and so they appeared in the bookshop because that was a perfectly reasonable place for books to be without shifting reality that much. Perhaps it functioned a little like a release valve for the energy.

"Oi oi, Angel! Its about time you got something a little more interesting in around here." Aziraphale frowned, then his eyes widened as he saw what Crowley was holding.

"Good Lord!" He gasped. "Put that away before someone sees it." He supposed it was only natural, the boy was fifteen now, but honestly…

"Who knew humans could bend that much eh? I thought it was just because I used to be a snake. Can you get your leg up like that?" The demon was smiling far too much as Aziraphale grasped the book, tugging for a bit before Crowley let go and he was able to put his body between the book and the, admittedly few, patrons in the bookshop.

"Oh gosh." He swallowed at the image on the front of the book before hastily tucking it under his jacket. "Really, Crowley, I am sure you've seen, and done, all that sort of thing before. Probably a bit boring after six-thousand years."

"Yes, lots of times, hundreds of times, I mean you saw the orgies in Rome, and the 60's, couldn't go five minutes without someone getting naked in the 60's." Crowley shifted slightly as Aziraphale looked at him. "Oh alright, I was too busy, okay? I heard all these stories about people seducing humans and, I don't know, it seemed too easy. Besides why get one human in trouble when you can get two? I could if I wanted to, I just never did." He pulled another book off the shelf and sat down to read it with a huff.

"Crowley." Aziraphale couldn't help but smile at how awkward his friend was being about it all. "I'm sure you have done precisely as much or as little as you wanted to. After all I find it hard to imagine anyone would say no to YOU." He bent to put the book under his desk so he missed the look on Crowley's face at that particular comment.

"Can I tempt you to a spot of lunch?" He asked, as he had many times before.

"Temptation accomplished, I'll just close up shop and be ready in two shakes of a lamb's tail." The angel smiled, his little face lit up at the thought of food. It was adorable really, and somehow managed to not make Crowley feel nauseous despite that.

It was over six years now since the world didn't end. There was still no sign of it being likely to end. Crowley had been contacted with an offer to try and take over hell, given the general power struggles in the absence of Satan, who had after all been somewhat trapped into the form of a middle-aged man, but he turned them down. There were still books, a mixture of educational, entertaining and… other. Aziraphale had managed to encourage Crowley into romance novels, but while he had tried to suggest Jane Austen, Crowley had gravitated to Mills and Boon, much to Aziraphale's dismay, but at least he was reading something. They now had a standing table at a lovely little restaurant down the road once a week, where Crowley would sip wine and watch Aziraphale enjoy the food. A few weeks ago there had been a variety of books on the LGBTQ+ community, which turned out to be because Brian had come out to his friends as Bi.

Aziraphale was happily listening to music and avoiding selling any books when a profound sense of urgency swirled through the shop, a feeling of something about to happen. He frowned, and tried to consider whether to call Crowley… well they had been looking out for each other a bit, and he might have some ideas… he pushed the button.

"Hello there, angel." Aziraphale smiled at how quickly the demon picked up. "Everything okay? I haven't misplaced a day and we're supposed to be meeting up have I?"

"No, no, nothing like that… I just… well it feels a little strange in the shop and I was wondering if you could come by and, well, take a look at things I suppose? And whether you had noticed anything odd at all?" He didn't like to ask, but then who else was he supposed to talk to about these things? Heaven most definitely was not taking his calls and he wasn't about to start asking the other lot.

"I can pop right over if there's nobody looking too closely at your end of the phone. Have a bit of a check of things." Aziraphale was quite glad he'd decided to keep the shop closed today, and more than a little comforted by the idea that Crowley was willing to drop everything to come over.

In short order they were standing in front of the shelf, but nothing seemed to be happening, just that feeling of urgency and potential, like something had to happen, something needed to change… but what? They tried taking all the books off, in case it was a large amount of books that were needed at the same time, and then they tried putting all the books back on, even the rude ones. Still nothing seemed to happen, but that feeling was still there.

They wound up sitting on the couch together, drinking and talking about all sorts of things, about old times, and about what each of them had thought the other had done which had turned out to be humans, ands about Adam and his friends and how they seemed to be growing up to be fine young people. At some point Crowley must have fallen asleep because he woke up to find he was covered by a blanket and the sun was peeking through the windows. Aziraphale was lying half on a book, and Crowley was quite amused to find it was one of the risqué ones he had made such a big deal about putting away securely.

He snapped his fingers and was considering drawing something on the angel's face in sharpie, when he realised what it was that had woken him up. The feeling was gone. He quickly walked over to the bookcase. He resisted the urge to scream.

"Bugger, not ANOTHER baby, we had enough trouble with the last one." Crowley muttered to himself. Perhaps he could get rid of it before Aziraphale woke up. There was a church down the road, he could go there, leave it on the doorstep and be back before anyone noticed he was gone…


	2. Can we keep it?

Crowley was halfway to the doorway when he stood on a creaky floorboard, causing Aziraphale to wake up, at least part way.

"What's going on?"

"Nothing, go back to sleep, I'm just taking some rubbish out." Aziraphale frowned, even half asleep that didn't sound like something the demon would do. He rubbed his eyes sitting up. "I said go back to sleep." The baby made a small noise and suddenly the angel was very awake, walking towards Crowley urgently. "Bugger. Fine, it's a baby, lets get rid of it."

"Crowley! You can't just throw out a baby. Where did it come from anyway?" He was looking at the baby with a very soft look on his face and as much as it was adorable Crowley had a sinking feeling the angel was already getting attached… then the baby opened its eyes. "Oh good heavens! Look! It's got your eyes Crowley, is this… is this your baby?" Crowley glared down at the infant, which did indeed have yellow slitted eyes much like his own.

"It's not my baby. It showed up on the bookshelf." He responded grumpily. "Now let's get rid of it before you get too attached." It was clearly too late though… the baby had its grip on one of Aziraphale's fingers. "Please, angel, please can we just give it away? Not our problem any more, just give it away…?"

"But it's so small, and helpless, and beautiful, besides you know the humans are afraid of things they don't understand, what will they say about its eyes? I wonder what it's called." Crowley stomped back over towards the bookcase, which caused the baby to lose its grip on Aziraphale and start crying, which he ignored.

"Check that folded bit of paper then, I'm sure it says something." It had been under the baby and he'd made a note to come back and get it once he had gotten rid of the thing but clearly that was not going to happen now. Aziraphale frowned and gave the baby his left pinky finger to hold onto while he used his right hand to open up the papers.

"It's adoption papers… we're both listed as the adoptive fathers, look." Crowley sighed heavily. "Seraphina Crowley, that's a lovely name. We could call her Sarah for short." Aziraphale was looking at him with pleading in his eyes, like he had the last crepe in the world and didn't want to share. But this wasn't just food, and they couldn't just… raise a baby. Could they?

"Fine, you can keep it, but I am not changing any nappies."


End file.
